Chasing Bunnies
by M04
Summary: On the morning after a full moon two sweethearts experience a quiet closeness. Slash, not graphic, M/M, non-cannon pairing


Disclaimer: Alas, I own nothing. Characters, setting, the whole lot belongs to a woman more brilliant than I. Only this arrangement is my own.

Light filtered through the leaves onto a bloodied distorted seemingly lifeless body. The way of the branches endowed the figure with artificial movement. Shuddering and rasping the young man, if you can call him that, twitched and rolled onto his back. His face contorted as the twigs and nettles of the forest floor rubbed piercingly into his most recent wounds. Slowly, aching with every breath, he raised himself to a seated position and began eying his wounds. In a nearby pile of leaves and enormous black dog turned onto its back and began running, chasing some dream creature. Wistful eyes turned from his own injuries to his blissfully unaware companion. The wounds were no more severe than expected. This condition was not new.

With a yelp and a start the dog rolled onto its feet, jolted awake.

"Tried to follow the rabbit into the hole again, eh?" at this point a casual passerby might have thought themselves mad for what they saw and heard. Madness or not it seemed the dog intentionally stuck his tongue out at the blood covered man. A moment of examining his wounds and the remnants of the claws that inflicted the injuries followed. The man heard a soft pop.

"Not nice Mooney, you know Padfoot's dreams are…different."

"No need to tell me about different dreams Sirius, I know."

"Yes, but you don't chase bunnies."

"No, I don't." The young man drew his knees to his chest, wrapping his arms so tightly around himself that he looked like a thin, hay-haired, oblong ball. He pressed his forehead into his knees and closed his eyes. "I'm tired Sirius."

Where the dog had been a striking young man had taken his place. The devilishly handsome lad rose to his feet and stepped across the clearing. His carelessly attractive air stuck out sharply when he sat behind the nearly emaciated looking bloody blonde. He stretched out his long muscular legs on either side of the trembling werewolf and enveloped him in an embrace that he hoped said more than any words Sirius could say. Remus sighed and relaxed a little, leaning back into Sirius' warmth. The taller boy kissed the back of his neck and nuzzled him gently. The nights of the full moon were so hard on Remus it made the animagus' heart ache. For nearly an hour the two students sat and breathed in the forest air. To most students at Hogwarts this was the Forbidden Forest but to Mooney, Worm Tail, Padfoot and Prongs it was simply trees. It was the presence of this remarkable foursome that lead, in part, to the forest being forbidden.

After a time Sirius pried himself to his feet and stretched his angular torso towards to mid-morning sun. The joints in his neck and back popped and the snap echoed off the surrounding trees like a muggle gunshot. Remus covered his ears and groaned. The morning after a change often reminded Remus of descriptions he had heard of the morning after a night of hard drinking. Why anyone would voluntarily subject themselves to this feeling utterly baffled him. A large, strong hand touched his frail, gashed one and pulled him from is ruminations.

"Up and at 'em wolf boy. Madam Pomfrey will make a rug out of Padfoot if I don't get you to the hospital wing before noon." Remus groaned again and allowed the larger boy to hoist him, apparently effortlessly, to his feet. He leaned heavily on the tall, dark-haired boy grateful for his support.

When they reached the large wooden doors at the front of the enormous Hogwarts Castle the young men stopped so Remus could catch his breath. _This is so unfair, _Sirius thought angrily, _no one his age should have to deal with this… weakness. _At least the students would all be in class by now. Sirius didn't relish the idea of trying to sneak a mauled looking teen past the crowded dining hall if they waited for classes to be dismissed for lunch. April brought with it a fresh wave of panic for Hogwarts students as the end of term exams loomed every nearer. The upshot of which was that even the students who might have a free period now were assured to be tucked away in the library or their common rooms frantically revising an entire year of magical instruction.

Safely inside the castle Sirius fished his wand from his jean pocket and muttered a feather-weight charm on his partner. The charm was, of course, completely unnecessary. Sirius could easily have carried his love up the steps to the waiting mediwitch. It was for Remus that the charm was cast. It allowed the werewolf to move without leaning so heavily on the animagus. It made Remus feel more self-sufficient, even as he left a trail of flaking dried blood in their wake.

"Well it's about time," Madam Pomfrey chided as the two young men made their way to Remus' usual bed. The waifish werewolf dropped onto the soft mattress and let his head sink into the pillow. Sirius sat himself on the edge of the bed and entwined his fingers with Remus' hand.

"I'm sorry Madam Pomfrey, we were held up." The matron raised a skeptical eyebrow but let the question go unasked.

"You know the chances of scaring increase when the wounds aren't seen to right away. I still don't know why we can't find a way to stop him hurting himself all together." She continued to blather as she gathered potions and handed a jar of vile smelling acid green paste to Sirius. Without any conversation or instruction the three set to work: the dark-haired boy dabbing gently at the less severe looking wounds, the sandy-haired boy swallowing bottles of healing potions and a dreamless sleep elixir, and the mediwitch casting a variety of spells to check for injuries beyond the normal.

After a short time the sedative started to make Remus' eyes droop sleepily and he settled in for a full days rest. Sirius set the jar on the table and lay next to the smaller young man, wrapping him in an embrace that made the blonde sigh happily in the space between wakefulness and dream. He lay his head on the pillow and pulled the smaller young man close to his chest, laying one hand against Remus' ribcage to feel the steady beating of his heart. The matron drew a privacy screen around the dreaming 7th years and let out a sigh of her own, musing as she walked. _It must be true love, to be so dedicated to one so fragile. They do make a lovely couple though. They just seem to match._

Behind the privacy screen Sirius kissed Remus' forehead. _I'm so lucky, _he thought, _to have someone as strong as Remus. He thinks I hold him up but it's really the other way around. _ With that thought he drifted in a blissfully bunny free sleep.


End file.
